Unclaimed remains of more than 1,400 to be buried

Los Angeles County will soon bury the cremated remains of more than 1,400 individuals left unclaimed.

The annual service honoring the dead will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 30 at the county cemetery on the corner of 1st and Lorena streets in Boyle Heights.

Why do so many bodies go unclaimed? There’s no specific reason. Some people die alone in nursing homes and hospitals. Some were homeless. Others were babies who died at birth.

The babies' ashes are stored in small paper bags, neatly folded like wallets and placed in metal drawers. The adults’ ashes are stored in brown plastic boxes, which don’t quite fit into five tall cabinets at the county crematorium.

A couple of days before the ceremony their ashes will be placed in a single mass grave. “2013” — the year they were cremated — will mark the plot.